IT\u2019S been many years since Heathcote was home to a deb ball, but local parent Kylie Ryan is hoping to bring the event back to town.<\/p>\n
She said it would need a minimum of eight couples to be viable and has put out a call for secondary students in years 11 and 12 who would be interested in taking part.<\/p>\n
\u201cI’m also happy to open it up to any of the previous year 11 and 12 kids that have missed out because of COVID, there’s no age restriction really,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don’t mind, and I don’t think the event planners mind, because if we get our own venue it’s not connected to a school.<\/p>\n
\u201cI’d applied for a deb position for my daughter in Bendigo and she missed out, they were inundated with people, so I thought okay, I’m going to try and help our kids out this side.<\/p>\n
Ms Ryan said she wanted young people to have something to look forward to.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe last few years have been so full on and hard and difficult for these kids,\u201d she said. \u201cThey’ve been pulled out of school, there’s a lot of depression and anxiety and there’s a lot of school refusal even now that I’m aware of.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I thought I could get them something that was wholesome, where they’re learning older dances, they’re meeting other peers, you know just a generally nice environment.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Ryan said she had two different event organisers looking at venues in the Heathcote and Seymour areas.<\/p>\n
\u201cI’m just trying to pull it away a bit from Bendigo, partly because there’s not a lot for the local girls here, and also because Bendigo seems to be booked out everywhere that does run it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Ryan said deb balls were now often called presentation balls, which reflected a more modern approach to the event.<\/p>\n
She also said she welcomed sponsorship from any interested local businesses who would like to help teenagers who would not otherwise be able to afford to take part.<\/p>\n
Anyone wanting to register their interest in either taking part or supporting the event can contact Kylie Ryan on 0405 314 114.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
IT\u2019S been many years since Heathcote was home to a deb ball, but local parent Kylie Ryan is hoping to bring the event back to town. She said it would need a minimum of eight couples to be viable and has put out a call for secondary students in years 11 and 12 who would […]<\/p>\n